As politics once again leaves a power vacuum, the Lebanese people are gripped by an unprecedented economic crisis. The Maronite bishop of Batroun points the finger at politicians and corruption. Catholic schools, however, have seen an increase in enrollment. "When the time for change comes, we want to be ready," he tells AsiaNews.

Milan (AsiaNews) - More than 80 percent of Lebanon's population lives below the poverty line. "People turn to the Church for help, but we are not the state," comments Maronite Bishop of Batroun, Mounir Khairallah. The state, in Lebanon, is once again absent: on Oct. 30, after six years in power, Michel Aoun left the presidential office and a huge political vacuum after interim Prime Minister Najib Mikati failed for six months to form a new government. "As the Church we try to be the voice of truth for the people, we try to say what no one is saying, but people are now mostly struggling with the economic collapse," comments Msgr. Khairallah. 

 

In less than three years the lira has lost more than 90 percent of its value, and the Lebanese cannot withdraw their savings from banks. Light, when it is there, is hiccupped. By the end of last month more than 1,400 people had contracted cholera, with 17 deaths confirmed. 

 

The Land of the Cedars is collapsing in on itself, continuing on the course of a tragic setback triggered by the Beirut port explosion in August 2020, but of which there were already hints before. In October 2019, young people had taken to the streets demanding an end to the confessional political system that assigns government positions based on religious affiliation.

 

The Maronite bishop points the finger at politicians and corruption: "We can trace the current situation back to 1975, when the civil war broke out. Formally it ended in 1990 but the militias fighting each other continued to do their own thing once they entered politics. No one swore allegiance to the state to rebuild it after the conflict." 

 

The elections held in May this year did not bring the breath of fresh air that was hoped for: "Only 20 new deputies were elected out of 128. The others are already well-known personalities, children or grandchildren of families that have always ruled the country."

 

For the people, the only solution is to turn to the Church: "We are not living a worthy life," the prelate tells AsiaNews again, "we are surviving thanks to remittances from the diaspora and thanks to donations from foreign entities."

 

Yet Christian schools, which are private and therefore more expensive, have seen an increase in enrollment this year. How is this possible? "On the one hand, the institutes are trying to meet families' needs, asking for half of the tuition in Lebanese lira and the other half in cash dollars," the Maronite eparch explains. "On the other hand, the real crisis is in public schools, because of the pressure given by the presence of Syrian refugees, who have become about 40 percent of the population." 

 

"Refugees as such have free access to schooling and health care," the bishop explains. But the system no longer holds: "Public schools do not have papers, pens, they cannot make photocopies." So families, including Muslim families, who value the universal human values imparted to their pupils, prefer to make an extra sacrifice and invest in new, young people. A hope that the Maronite Church also has. 

 

The under-30 generation, which grew up after the Ta'if Accords that ended the civil war, is tired of religious sectarianism and is calling for a return to the country of their fathers, when Cristians and Muslims did not wage war but did each other favors. The call for change, in other words, has not gone away: "We know it cannot be done overnight, but we want to be ready when the time comes. Many young people leave abroad as soon as they can, but many also decide to stay and start from scratch here rather than in another country."

 

Rebuilding a new Lebanon, then, is the mission of the Maronite Church. Not only through education and training a new ruling class, but also through interreligious dialogue. "It is necessary to cleanse the memory from the conflict and establish a dialogue in sincerity and respect," says Msgr. Khairallah. "Only in this way will Lebanon return to being the country-message of which John Paul II spoke." A message of peace, of pluralism and now perhaps of rebirth.

 

ECCLESIA IN ASIA IS THE ASIANEWS NEWSLETTER DEDICATED TO CHRISTIAN COMMUNITIES IN ASIA. WOULD YOU LIKE TO RECEIVE IT EVERY SUNDAY VIA E-MAIL? TO SUBSCRIBE TO THE NEWSLETTER, CLICK HERE.

• Ecclesia
• in
• Asia